Saturday, June 14, 2008

Buttons!

I finally made it to Joann's today and did a little button shopping. Here's the result:

Matt's Sampler Cardigan in Cascade 220click to enlarge

There's the usual "disregard the color" notation on this... I simply can't get my camera to get it (my camera thinks it's green... when in fact it's very yellow ochre-ish). I also can't verify how it fits... Matt's out in the yard chipping, plus it's pretty frickin' hot and humid. However, right now I'm very pleased with how it looks.

I modified the pattern to have "afterthought" pockets, and they worked beautifully. I did make a lot of bone headed mistakes with this project, but I still loved working the pattern. I know I'll knit this pattern again (both the cardigan and the pullover version). Let's do the official stats so I can cross it off my "to finish list", eh?

Project Stats:Pattern: Sampler Cardigan by Sarah James (a must have staple pattern)

Yarn: Cascade 220

Changes to the pattern: I didn't repeat some of the stitches section, but made every section unique. I added afterthought pockets. Had to reverse the buttonholes for a man. I also picked up stitches for the sleeves and worked them top down (the pattern has you start at the cuff and sew them in... no reason to do that with a drop shoulder style, eh?)

Problems with the pattern: None. All problems were knitter related.

Overall Impressions: There's a reason I love this pattern. Moving from stitch pattern section to stitch pattern section is a lot of fun. I love the way the stitches look, it's a good basic sweater. I knit this at a tight gauge (I used Cascade 220 on size 6 needles giving me 22 sts to 4") and I love the density I got with the fabric. I was thrilled to find the perfect buttons:

Sampler Cardigan detailclick to enlarge

Plus, those pockets turned out just like I wanted them to. So we're giving this a huge thumbs up... even if it is too big for Matt. It'll be a nice "relaxed" sweater for him and I know he's going to use it a lot this winter.